Arickaree/Woodlin is the new No. 1 team in the 6-man football poll this week. More photos. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
Turns out a win over a No. 1 team does help you move up to the top spot.
Arickaree/Woodlin, No. 2 in CHSAANow’s 6-man football poll last week, moved up to No. 1 this week following its 60-30 win over Stratton/Liberty on Friday night.
Coach David Saffer was expecting the move after the game on Friday.
Saffer’s squad was the only new No. 1 team this week. Valor Christian (5A), Pine Creek (4A), Lutheran (3A), Brush (2A), Paonia (1A) and Dayspring Christian (8-man) all held firm atop their respective rankings.
Ralston Valley is up to No. 4 in this week’s 5A football poll. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
Valor held on to the top spot despite its loss to Chandler (Ariz.). But the Eagles are no longer a unanimous selection: they received 13 of the 18 first-place votes this week.
No. 2 Pomona, No. 3 Grandview and No. 4 Ralston Valley — which got three — also received first-place votes in 5A this week. Fairview rounds out the top five after bumping up one spot.
Regis Jesuit is sixth, Cherry Creek fell to seventh following its loss to Jordan (Utah), Overland moved up to eighth and Cherokee Trail fell to No. 9 after losing to Regis Jesuit. Doherty is the lone newcomer in 5A this week, and joins at No. 10.
Among the biggest movers this week was Fort Collins, which jumped up from No. 9 to No. 5 in the 4A poll following its win over Windsor last week.
The 4A ranking added Pueblo Centennial (No. 10), 3A added Berthoud (also No. 10) and St. Mary’s joined 2A (No. 9). In 1A, newcomer Rye is No. 10, and 6-man has two new teams this week: No. 9 Hanover and No. 10 Weldon Valley.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding, except in 5A where they are used as part of the seeding criteria.
Ralston Valley junior Kyle Rush (30) follow the block of senior Andrew Wingard (28) on Friday night at North Area Athletic Complex. Rush had 11 carries for 252 yards and two touchdowns in the Mustangs’ 58-6 victory. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — To say Ralston Valley has a stable of running backs in its offensive arsenal might be a gross understatement.
The Mustangs, ranked No. 7 in this week’s CHSAANow.com Class 5A football poll, proved Andrew Wingard isn’t the only running back capable of putting up remarkable numbers on the ground. Junior Kyle Rush carried the ball 11 times for 252 yards and a pair of touchdowns Friday at the North Area Athletic Complex as the Mustangs dominated rival Arvada West 58-6.
“I’m not lying. I’ve got five guys who can carry the football,” Ralston Valley coach Matt Loyd said. “Most teams don’t have the luxury. We’ll go with the guy with the hot hand and go with it.”
Ralston Valley junior Kyle Rush (30) breaks loose from Arvada West’s defense on Friday night. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
Rush had the hot hand Friday. He had five carries for more than 20 yards, including an 80-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter that put the Mustangs (3-0 overall, 1-0 in league) ahead 51-6 and induced a running clock for the remainder of the game.
“The entire team contributed, no doubt,” Rush said. “It was a great win overall. We’re glad to get the win and look forward to next week.”
Wingard, Anthony Falbo, Noah Wells and Dalton Pibble each had a rushing touchdowns for Ralston Valley in the Class 5A Jeffco League opener for both teams. Quarterback Chase Heffley threw for a pair of touchdowns.
The Mustangs’ defense applied plenty of pressure on A-West senior quarterback Travis Thorsten. Ralston Valley snagged five interceptions. Senior Dallin Jones grabbed the first pick from his linebacker position in the second quarter.
“We have three awesome defensive linemen in Collin Root, Kyle Emery and Dillon Baker that makes plays for us,” Jones said. “They make us look good.”
Arvada West sophomore Joey Perez, left, takes a hit from Ralston Valley junior Matt McNeil during the Class 5A Jeffco League opener for both teams Friday at the North Area Athletic Complex. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
A-West’s lone score came after Wingard fumbled a punt return and the Wildcats recovered on the Mustangs’ 6-yard-line late in the first quarter. A touchdown pass from Thorsten to senior Zach Kuhlmann prevented the shutout.
“It felt good just because you grow up with these kids and go to school with them until high school,” said Jones of the win. “We are going to make sure we are the best team in Arvada.”
Ralston Valley will host Columbine (1-2, 1-0) at 7 p.m. Thursday at NAAC next week. The Rebels squeaked out a 43-42 overtime victory against Bear Creek (2-1, 0-1) on Friday at Jeffco Stadium.
“We definitely weren’t perfect. We’ve got a lot of things to work on,” Loyd said. “Defensively we are still getting better, but we are playing pretty good there.”
A-West (2-1, 0-1) will attempt to get back in the win column when it travels to Mullen High School next Friday night. Mullen (1-2, 0-1) suffered a shutout loss to Pomona (2-1, 1-0) on Thursday night.
Ralston Valley’s Michael McLean, Kyle Emery and Dillon Baker combine on a sack of Arvada West quarterback Travis Thorsten during the first half Friday at the North Area Athletic Complex. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
Lakewood is No. 9 in this week’s 5A football ranking. More photos. (Tom Hoganson)
Lakewood, coming off a big win over Montrose, has joined the Class 5A football poll this week.
The Tigers beat Montrose, then ranked No. 2 in 4A, on Saturday. Monday, they entered CHSAANow.com’s ranking at No. 9.
Elsewhere in 5A, Valor Christian remained the unanimous No. 1 team, but things changed behind the Eagles. Cherokee Trail (No. 2), Pomona (No. 3) and Grandview (No. 4) all moved up one spot this week after Cherry Creek, last week’s No. 2, fell to Pomona.
Creek is No. 5 this week, and is followed by Fairview, Ralston Valley, Regis Jesuit, newcomer Lakewood and Overland.
Denver South is ranked No. 3 in this week’s 4A poll. More photos. (Pam Wagner)
The 4A ranking also added one team in No. 10 Longmont, which was ranked in the preseason. Pine Creek maintained its spot at No. 1. Pueblo South moved up to No. 2 after Montrose’s loss, and Denver South bumped up to No. 3. Montrose is fourth this week, and Vista Ridge is fifth.
In 3A, Erie joined at No. 10. Lutheran continued its stay at No. 1, and Delta remained just behind at No. 2. Discovery Canyon bumped up to No. 3 after its big win over Holy Family last week.
The 2A poll added No. 8 Bayfield, while 1A added No. 7 Cedaredge and No. 9 Platte Canyon. Granada (No. 7) joined the 8-man ranking, while 6-man added No. 8 Cheyenne Wells and No. 9 Flagler.
The No. 1 teams in each of those classifications remained the same. Those are Brush, Paonia, Dayspring Christian and Stratton/Liberty, respectively.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding, except in 5A where they are used as part of the seeding criteria.
Ralston Valley senior Andrew Wingard attempt to break through the tackle of ThunderRidge linebacker Alec Laurienti during the first half Friday night. Wingard scored a trio of touchdowns in the Mustangs’ 38-0 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — Ralston Valley put on display a dominating defense and a grinding running attack in its football home opener Friday night at the North Area Athletic Complex.
Ralston Valley, ranked No. 9 in this week’s CHSAANow.com Class 5A football poll, is off to the start Mustangs’ coach Matt Loyd wanted before jumping into a challenging 5A Jeffco League schedule. The Mustangs improved to 2-0 on the season with a 38-0 shutout victory against ThunderRidge.
“Defensively, I thought we played really well,” Loyd said. “You are going to win a lot of games if your defense plays like that.”
The defense set the tone early for Ralston Valley. The Grizzlies (0-2) only managed to cross midfield once in the opening half. That drive ended with the Mustangs taking over on downs in the final minute of the second quarter.
Ralston Valley senior Collin Root labels ThunderRidge running back Zeke Johnson in the Grizzlies’ backfield for a loss Friday night. (Dennis Pleuss)
“I couldn’t be more proud of the guys. Going into halftime with a shutout was huge,” Ralston Valley senior Collin Root said. “Coach Loyd always stresses dominating and we did that tonight.”
After a safety gave Ralston Valley a 2-0 lead with 4:08 left in the first quarter, Root booted a 43-yard field goal to give the Mustangs a 5-0 advantage late in the first quarter.
Root was a jack-of-all-trades on the night. The defensive end, tight end and kicker had two sacks, a catch for eight yards along with the field goal and three PATs.
“It’s tough because he (Root) is on the field all the time,” Loyd said. “He is a special player and a great kid too.”
Root joked that he might try to lobby to get some carries out of the backfield if needed later in the season to add to his variety of skills.
“I’d like to think of myself as a versatile player,” Root said. “Anything to do to help the team I’ll do. I’d like to think I can do it all.”
Ralston Valley’s running attack kicked it into gear in the second quarter. Seniors Andrew Wingard and Noah Wells scoring on a pair touchdown runs to push the Mustangs’ lead to 18-0 at halftime.
The Mustangs finished with nearly 300 yards on the ground. Wingard had 19 carries for 103 yards and two touchdowns. Junior Kyle Rush added 13 carries for 118 yards.
“We have a good repertoire of backs that can pound the ball with Kyle Rush, Noah Wells and myself, along with that offensive line,” said Wingard, who also caught a 58-yard touchdown on Ralston Valley’s first drive of the second half.
Wingard faked a block before breaking open for Ralston Valley quarterback Chase Heffley. Wingard already has eight touchdowns on the season. He scored five times in Ralston Valley’s opener against La Serna High School in California.
Ralston Valley senior Anthony Vessa, right, brings down ThunderRidge halfback Alex O’Reilly after a short gain Friday night at the North Area Athletic Complex in Arvada. Ralston Valley scored a 38-0 victory in the non-league game. (Dennis Pleuss)
Heffley was perfect through going 5-for-5 for 99 yards while splitting time at quarterback with fellow senior Cooper Loyd. Loyd scored Ralston Valley’s final touchdown with a 4-yard plunge midway through the fourth quarter.
Still, the main storyline Friday was Ralston Valley’s defense that wouldn’t be denied the shutout. Junior Tanner Hauptman’s interception late in the game kept ThunderRidge from scoring.
The Grizzlies were led offensively by running back Zeke Johnson, who had 20 carries for 61 yards in the loss.
“Unbelievable,” Wingard said of Ralston Valley’s defense. “It reminds me of two years ago during my sophomore year when we made a run into the semifinals. It’s a defense that works as a unit, flies around and does their jobs.”
Ralston Valley faces what appears to be a rejuvenated program in Arvada West (1-0) to open its 5A Jeffco League schedule next week.
First-year head coach Brad Pyatt, who was on the Wildcats’ 1997 5A state championship team, guided A-West to a Week 1 victory over Douglas County. The area rivals square off at 4 p.m. next Friday at NAAC.
While Wingard admitted it’s a huge game anytime Ralston Valley squares off against A-West, he added the Mustangs wouldn’t lose their focus.
“We won’t come out crazy, jumping around and talking trash,” Wingard said. “We will come out and do our job. We’ll do that every week.”
ThunderRidge has its first home game of the season next Thursday where the Grizzlies go against Douglas County.
ThunderRidge quarterback Tristan Eve (8) tries to escape the defensive pressure of Ralston Valley in the first quarter Friday night at the North Area Athletic Complex. (Dennis Pleuss)
Fairview senior Johnny Feauto (17), pictured last season after a win in the Class 5A semifinals. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Fairview’s offense was supposed to take a hit after graduating its quarterback and three leading receivers. Right?
Yeah, right.
The Knights, ranked No. 7 in this week’s poll, not only picked up right where they left off last Saturday, they expanded upon what last year’s near-record setting offense did on its way to football’s Class 5A championship game last season.
Led by senior Johnny Feauto, their “new” quarterback — more on that later — Fairview racked up 510 passing yards and 712 yards of total offense in its 58-28 win at Grand Junction.
The passing yards now rank No. 3 in the state record book, while the total offense is No. 10.
Here’s what’s scary: Fairview trailed Grand Junction 14-0 after the first quarter.
Last season, Anders Hill and Feauto combined to throw for 4,005 yards. It was only the third time in state history that a program had surpassed the 4,000-yard mark in passing. But Hill, now at Columbia, accounted for 3,878 of that — which is No. 4 all-time in state history for a single season.
Still, Feauto didn’t come out of nowhere. As a sophomore, he played in six games in relief of an injured Hill and threw for 2,316 yards and 21 touchdowns. In fact, his 414 yards on Saturday are just the third-most of Feauto’s career. He had outputs of 433 and 429 yards as a sophomore.
With a fully-healthy Hill back last season, Feauto focused on his role at cornerback and had six interceptions — including two in the semifinals against ThunderRidge.
Anyway, on Saturday, Feauto also had 122 rushing yards. That put his total output at 536 yards, which is now No. 7 all-time.
So this offense, despite losing guys like Hill, Sam Martin, Cam Frazier and Owen Harris, is still very potent. Because of Feauto, and because of other guys like Thomas Creese — who threw for the other 96 passing yards on Saturday — Carlo Kemp (two rushing touchdowns), David McWilliams (202 receiving yards, two touchdowns), Connor May (94 receiving yards, two touchdowns), Tim Ryan (109 all-purpose yards) and Steve D’Epagnier (41 receiving yards).
If anything, they’re just upholding tradition. Historically, Fairview has had one of the state’s best offenses.
The Knights own the Nos. 3 and 4 total marks for passing yards in a season. In addition to the 2013 mark of 4,005 yards, the program threw for 3,977 in 2002. Fairview also sits Nos. 1 and 2 in the record books for passes attempted and completed by a team in a season. And Martin, now at Miami of Ohio, holds the state records for catches (112) and receiving yards (1,860) in a season.
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Jefferson Academy’s Kupcho plays well at Colorado Women’s Open
(Courtesy of Mike Kupcho)
Jefferson Academy senior Jennifer Kupcho, last season’s Class 4A girls golf champion, finished tied for second at the Colorado Women’s Open last weekend. She finished at 1-under (215) over the three-day event, and actually held the lead after the first day at 6-under.
Kupcho was the top-placing amateur of the event.
“It’s really exciting to finish that high up in a pro tournament,” she told BoCoPreps afterward.
Other notable finishers:
2014 Cherry Creek grad Calli Ringsby (tied for 24th)
2010 Doherty graduate Paige Crawford (tied for 28th)
2012 Regis Jesuit graduate Kathleen Kershisnik (tied for 38th)
Columbine football hadn’t lost its opening game since 2006. Last week, the Rebels started 0-2. I can’t find the last time that happened in the program’s history. That said, both losses were five-point games. Columbine is off then week, then hosts Bear Creek next Friday.
Pueblo West boys soccer beat Lewis-Palmer 6-5 last Friday. Jaydon Moreschini, a senior, scored all six goals for the Cyclones.
Valor Christian quarterback Dylan McCaffrey, a sophomore, has been classified as an a four-star recruit by Scout.
More preseason volleyball honors for Lewis-Palmer’s Alexa Smith and Eaglecrest’s Jordyn Poulter: Both were named to High School Illustrated’s preseason All-American team.
Sticking with volleyball: Thomas Jefferson’s Jessica Jackson, a senior, was selected to play on an all-star team from the United States in Europe this summer.
Regis Jesuit announced that former DU defenseman Zach Blom, a member of the Pioneers’ 2005 national championship team, has joined its hockey program as an assistant.
Colorado’s mark on Wyoming football program has long been undeniable, but that seems extra true this season. Two Colorado products have been named captains of Wyoming’s football team: Grandview grad Eddie Yarbrough (a defensive end) and Palmer grad Dominic Rufran (a wide receiver). Rufran will start at wide receiver — along with former Grandview star Tanner Gentry. In all, 20 products of Colorado high schools are on Wyomong’s roster — including four 2014 grads. By comparison, CSU has 40 Colorado products on its roster this season and CU has 26.
Christian McCaffrey, who graduated from Valor Christian in May after an outstanding athletic career, had an electric debut for Stanford football on Saturday. We are all well aware of McCaffrey’s versatility — his 8,839 all-purpose yards are a state record — and he showed it in the Cardinal’s win against UC Davis. He had this 52-yard touchdown reception — the first of his career — and a 44-yard punt return. McCaffrey had one rush for 10 yards, the 52 receiving yards, returned three punts for 60 yards, and was even on kickoff coverage. Said Stanford offensive coordinator Mike Bloombgren to sfgate.com: “Nah, that didn’t surprise me. I’m not sure he’ll be able to do anything to surprise me anymore.”
2014 Falcon graduate Kalen Ballage also scored a touchdown in his debut for Arizona State last week. He finished with 37 yards on 12 attempts. Still, Ballage told the Arizona Republic, “I definitely want to be better. Now that I hit the ground running and got the first game out of the way, I’ll be able to just play.”
2010 Rocky Mountain graduate Marco Gonzales picked up his first MLB win on Saturday. “It feels pretty rewarding,” Gonzales told MLB.com afterward. He made his debut in June.
Another recent addition to football’s record book: Holy Family just recently submitted the career (2011-13) numbers for former quarterback David Sommers. His 8,326 yards of total offense are No. 10 all-time.
Former Pine Creek setter Rory McCloy was named the NJCAA Division I national player of the week last week. Now at Laramie County Community College in Wyoming, she had 175 assists in her team’s first four matches — and averaged 10.9 per set. She’s currently leading the nation in assists with 345.
Jefferson Academy alum Ally Thimsen, a 2014 graduate, was named the Big Sky offensive player of the week after recording two goals and an assist in one game.
Wheat Ridge senior Jacquelyn Miller is tagged out at home plate by Ralston Valley junior Rylie Strong (3) during the fourth inning Wednesday at Ralston Valley High School. Miller was attempting to score on a wild pitch. (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — It was an old-fashioned pitching duel through four innings Wednesday at Ralston Valley High School’s softball field.
Defending Class 4A state champion Wheat Ridge, ranked No. 2 in this week’s CHSAANow.com 4A softball rankings, was locked in a scoreless non-league game with Ralston Valley. The Mustangs are ranked No. 8 in 5A.
“It’s always fun when two teams are competing and it’s three-up, three-down,” Wheat Ridge sophomore pitcher Riley Scott said.
Wheat Ridge junior Ann Marie Torres connects on a pitch in the first inning Wednesday. Torres had a pair of doubles in the Farmers’ 6-1 victory against Ralston Valley. (Dennis Pleuss)
The Farmers’ offense came alive late with a pair of three-run innings in the fifth and seven to eventually claim a 6-1 victory. Scott picked up her fourth victory in the circle allowing just an RBI single by Ralston Valley sophomore Sydney Harsh in the bottom of the fifth inning that broke up her shutout.
Scott has appeared to solidify herself as the Farmers’ ace after Wheat Ridge coach Marty Stricklett began the season using a combo of five different pitchers.
“She (Scott) is throwing strikes and living low. That is the key to being a pitcher,” Stricklett said of Scott, who didn’t surrender an extra-base hit Wednesday afternoon. “You have to live low. She is doing a good job for us as a sophomore.”
Wheat Ridge’s offense failed to capitalize on a pair of situations in the third and fourth innings. The Farmers (6-2) had runners at second and third with no outs, but Ralston Valley junior pitcher Rylie Strong was able to work out of the jams on both occasions without giving up a run.
“I thought Rylie (Strong) did a pretty good job. Our defense did fairly well behind her,” Ralston Valley coach Wendy Davies said. “We just for some reason didn’t hit the ball well today.”
The Farmers’ offense finally broke through with a two-out RBI single up the middle by senior Analece Apodaca in the top of the fifth inning. Wheat Ridge senior Grace White roped an RBI triple and eventually scored on a throwing error to give Wheat Ridge a 3-0 lead.
“It was huge,” Scott said of White’s triple. “We really needed some hits. Our team was struggling with our bats and we needed something to get us going.”
Wheat Ridge tacked on some insurance runs in the top of the seventh inning. White, along with fellow seniors Jacquelyn Miller and Mary Sand, each knocked in a run to push the Farmers’ lead to 6-1.
Ralston Valley junior pitcher Rylie Strong held Wheat Ridge’s powerful offense in check for the majority of the non-league game Wednesday. However, the Farmers mustered up a pair of three-run inning to take a 6-1 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
Despite the victory, Stricklett wasn’t too pleased with a few fielding and mental errors.
“You’ve got to go through a gauntlet if you want to get to where you want to be,” Stricklett said of the Farmers’ tough non-league schedule that includes a date against top-ranked Fredrick next Tuesday. “The girls are going to have to pick it up a notch. We have played a lot of tough teams, but it’s going to get a lot tougher from here on out.”
Ralston Valley (6-3) will get a crack at the defending 5A state champions when the Mustangs face Legacy at 4:30 p.m. Friday.
Davies hopes to get her team a little healthier as the 5A Jeffco League schedule kicks into gear in less than two weeks. The Mustangs have been dealing with several injuries. Starting shortstop Malory Eldredge had to leave Wednesday’s game and didn’t return.
“We are trying to make it work with people in different positions,” Davies said. “We just need to have a practice where we have everybody in the same spot because it has changed every day.”
Wheat Ridge sophomore Riley Scott winds up for a pitch Wednesday afternoon in a non-league game against Ralston Valley. Scott scattered seven singles in the Farmers’ 6-1 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
